Just Eat Takeaway, Europe’s leading meal delivery company, has agreed to sell its U.S. subsidiary Grubhub to Wonder for $650 million—a fraction of the $7.3 billion it paid just three years ago. This significant move not only ends the company’s troubled venture into the American market but also raises questions about the profitability of food delivery services worldwide.
Key Facts:
– Just Eat Takeaway is selling Grubhub to Wonder for $650 million.
– The company originally purchased Grubhub in 2020 for $7.3 billion.
– Wonder is a food-delivery startup led by former Walmart executive Marc Lore.
– The sale is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2025.
– Just Eat Takeaway’s shares rose 20% after announcing the deal.
The Rest of The Story:
Just Eat Takeaway, headquartered in Amsterdam, had been seeking to sell Grubhub since 2022 after acquiring it amid the pandemic-fueled surge in food delivery demand. However, the U.S. market proved challenging due to slowing growth, high taxes, and regulatory hurdles like fee caps imposed by New York City, which reportedly cost the company around $100 million annually.
Analysts have pointed out that the company destroyed over $7 billion in shareholder value through its ill-fated U.S. expansion.
Despite this, the announcement of the sale boosted Just Eat Takeaway’s shares by 20% in early trading, potentially marking their biggest daily rise since August 2022.
The company maintains that the sale will not impact its full-year guidance and that it retains no significant liabilities associated with Grubhub.
Wonder, the buyer, is a food-delivery startup led by Marc Lore, a former Walmart executive.
The acquisition of Grubhub is set to be completed in the first quarter of 2025.
Meanwhile, industry observers suggest that Just Eat Takeaway might consider exiting other markets, such as Australia and Canada, to better align its valuation with European competitors.
Just Eat Takeaway announced the sale of its US unit Grubhub to startup Wonder for $650 million, just four years after acquiring the company for $7.3 billion. Read: https://t.co/K7SFoV2Qot pic.twitter.com/RnqVtnCx6p
— Reuters Business (@ReutersBiz) November 13, 2024
Commentary:
The sale of Grubhub at a fraction of its purchase price reveals the harsh reality that while food delivery services have surged in popularity, turning a profit in this industry is remarkably challenging.
The initial $7.3 billion valuation of Grubhub in 2020 seems, in hindsight, dramatically overestimated. Factors such as intense competition, regulatory hurdles like fee caps, and high operational costs have made profitability elusive.
Just Eat Takeaway’s substantial loss on Grubhub highlights the risks companies face when expanding aggressively without fully accounting for market complexities.
It serves as a cautionary tale for investors and industry players about the dangers of overvaluation and the importance of sustainable growth strategies over rapid expansion.
The Bottom Line:
Just Eat Takeaway’s decision to sell Grubhub for $650 million signals a retreat from the challenging U.S. market and highlights the difficulties in achieving profitability within the food delivery sector.
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The significant loss reflects overvaluation and market miscalculations, serving as a reminder that even popular services must navigate complex economic and regulatory landscapes to succeed.